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Seoul: The size of the Asian shipping and shipbuilding industries is such that they should occupy a more prominent and influential position in the international regulatory process than they currently do, according to Mr Oh Kong-Gyun, chairman and ceo of the Korean Register of Shipping (KR). Generating a louder voice for Asian shipping had been a central theme of Mr Oh’s recent IACS chairmanship and one that he is keen to continue now his tenure at IACS is complete. Mr Oh was addressing an international forum of senior shipping people who had gathered to participate in SIMS, a Korean Register conference organised with the support of the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, the Korea Shipowners’ Association, the Korea Shipbuilders’ Association and the Korea Marine Equipment Association. Its primary aim was to further the promotion of safety and the protection of the environment through quality shipbuilding. Speaking on the theme of safety, Mr Oh was quick to highlight - against the backdrop of the economic recession and the current poor shipping markets - that all those involved in shipping “cannot let quality be downgraded in these troubled times, this has to be first and foremost in our thinking.” He went on to say, “we must continually push ahead with our commitment to invest both time and resources into improving the design, construction and operation of ships”. [22/09/09]